Postern of Fate (Tommy and Tuppence Series) - Agatha Christie [86]
‘That’s one use,’ said Tuppence, ‘but it’s very good to put on slight scratches or scars or if children cut themselves or anything like that. Have you got the thing all right?’
‘What thing, what do you mean, Tuppence?’
‘The thing we just got out of the Cambridge Lohengrin. That’s what I mean. The thing that was hanging on a nail. Perhaps it’s something important, you know. They saw us. And so if they tried to kill us–and tried to get whatever it was–that really would be something!’
Chapter 11
Hannibal Takes Action
Tommy sat with the police inspector in his office. The police officer, Inspector Norris, was nodding his head gently.
‘I hope with any luck we may get results, Mr Beresford,’ he said. ‘Dr Crossfield, you say, is attending to your wife.’
‘Yes,’ said Tommy, ‘it isn’t serious, I gather. It was just grazing by a bullet and it bled a good deal, but she’s going to be all right, I think. There’s nothing really dangerous, Dr Crossfield said.’
‘She’s not very young, though, I suppose,’ said Inspector Norris.
‘She’s over seventy,’ said Tommy. ‘We’re both of us getting on, you know.’
‘Yes, yes. Quite so,’ said Inspector Norris. ‘I’ve heard a good deal about her locally, you know, since you came here to live. People have taken to her in a big way. We’ve heard about her various activities. And about yours.’
‘Oh, dear,’ said Tommy.
‘Can’t live down your record, you know, whatever it is. Good or bad,’ said Inspector Norris in a kindly voice. ‘You can’t live down a record if you’re a criminal and you can’t live down your record if you’ve been a hero either. Of one thing I can assure you. We’ll do all we can to clear things up. You can’t describe whoever it was, I suppose?’
‘No,’ said Tommy. ‘When I saw him he was running with our dog after him. I should say he was not very old. He ran easily, I mean.’
‘Difficult age round about fourteen, fifteen onwards.’
‘It was someone older than that,’ said Tommy.
‘Not had any telephone calls or letters, demands for money or anything like that?’ said the Inspector. ‘Asking you to get out of your house, maybe?’
‘No,’ said Tommy, ‘nothing like that.’
‘And you’ve been here–how long?’
Tommy told him.
‘Hmmm. Not very long. You go to London, I gather, most days of the week.’
‘Yes,’ said Tommy. ‘If you want particulars–’
‘No,’ said Inspector Norris, ‘no. No, I don’t need any particulars. The only thing I should suggest is that–well, you don’t go away too often. If you can manage to stay at home and look after Mrs Beresford yourself…’
‘I thought of doing that anyway,’ said Tommy. ‘I think this is a good excuse for my not turning up always at the various appointments I’ve got in London.’
‘Well, we’ll do all we can to keep an eye on things, and if we could get hold of this whoever it is…’
‘Do you feel–perhaps I oughtn’t to ask this–’ said Tommy–‘do you feel you know who it is? Do you know his name or his reasons?’
‘Well, we know a good many things about some of the chaps around here. More than they think we know very often. Sometimes we don’t make it apparent how much we do know because that’s the best way to get at them in the end. You find out then who they’re mixed up with, who’s paying them for some of the things they do, or whether they thought of it themselves out of their own heads. But I think–well, I think somehow that this isn’t one of our locals, as you might say.’
‘Why do you think that?’ asked Tommy.
‘Ah. Well, one hears things, you know. One gets information from various headquarters elsewhere.’
Tommy and the Inspector looked at each other. For about five minutes neither of them spoke. They were just looking.
‘Well,’ said Tommy, ‘I–I see. Yes. Perhaps I see.’
‘If I may say one thing,’ said Inspector Norris.
‘Yes?’ said Tommy, looking rather doubtful.
‘This garden of yours. You want a bit of help in it, I understand.’
‘Our gardener was killed, as you probably know.’
‘Yes, I know all about that. Old Isaac Bodlicott, wasn’t it? Fine old chap. Told tall stories now and then about the wonderful things he’d done in his time. But he